Sweet and Sour Cabbage (red).

1 medium size red cabbage finely shredded.

3 tart apples diced.

3 tbsp butter/margarine.

1 medium onion diced.

1/4 cup vinegar.

1/2 cup water.

1 tsp salt.

6 tbsp brown sugar.

1/4 tsp pepper.

1 bay leaf.

 

1. Place all ingredients except cabbage into a pan cook for 5 minutes.

2. Add cabbage, simmer for 1 hour until tender.

3. Bay leaf should be removed before serving.

Butter Shortcake Biscuits.

200g 7oz Self raising flour (Xanthan gum for gluten free flour).

125g 4oz butter softened/margarine.

75g 3oz caster sugar.

2.5ml 1/2 tsp vanilla essence.

25g 1oz cornflour.

1. Preheat oven to 180C, 350F Gas Mark 4. Grease/line a large baking trays.

2. Cream the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. Add vanilla essence.

3. Sieve together the flour and cornflour and fold into the creamed mixture. Mix to form soft dough.

4. Roll the dough on a floured surface to 0.5cm(1/4 inch) thick and stamp out rounds using 6cm(2 1/2 inch) plain or fluted cutter.

5. Place the biscuits on baking trays about 2.5cm 1 inch apart, prick several times with a fork.

6.Bake for about 15 minutes until light golden brown.

7.Allow to cool slightly on the tray before placing them on wire rack to cool completely. Store in air tight container.

Chunky oven chips

• 1-1.25kg/2lb 4oz-2lb 12oz ripe tomatoes
• 1 medium onion
• 1 small carrot
• 1 celery stick
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 2 squirts of tomato purée (about 2 tsp)
• a good pinch of sugar
• 2 bay leaves
• 1.2 litres/ 2 pints hot vegetable stock (made with boiling water and 4 rounded tsp bouillon powder or 2 stock cubes)

1. Firstly, prepare your vegetables.  If the tomatoes are on their vines, pull them off. Wash the tomatoes. Cut each tomato into quarters and slice off any hard cores (they don’t soften during cooking and you’d get hard bits in the soup at the end). Peel the onion, carrot and chop them into small pieces. Chop celery roughly the same size.
2. Put the oil into a large heavy-based pan and heat it over a low heat. Hold your hand over the pan until you can feel the heat rising from the oil, add the onion, carrot and celery and mix them together with a wooden spoon. Still with the heat low, cook the vegetables until they’re soft and faintly coloured. For about 10 minutes and stir them two or three times so they cook evenly and don’t stick to the pan.
3. Holding the tube over the pan, squirt in the tomato purée, then stir it around so it turns the vegetables red. Put the chopped tomatoes, sprinkle in the sugar and grind in a little black pepper. Tear the bay leaves into a few pieces and put into the pan. Stir to mix everything together, put the lid on the pan and let the tomatoes stew over a low heat for 10 minutes until they shrink down in the pan and their juices flow nicely. From time to time, give the pan a good shake – this will keep everything well mixed.
4. Slowly pour in the stock,  stirring at the same time to mix it with the vegetables. Turn up the heat as high as it will go and wait until everything is bubbling, then turn the heat down to low again and put the lid back on the pan. Cook gently for 25 minutes, stirring a couple of times. At the end of cooking the tomatoes will have broken down and be very slushy looking.
5. Remove the pan from the heat, take the lid off  and take out the pieces of bay leaf and throw them away. Ladle the soup into your blender until it’s about three-quarters full, fit the lid on tightly and turn the machine on full. Blitz until the soup’s smooth, pour the soup into a large bowl. Repeat with the rest of the soup. (The soup may now be frozen for up to 3 months. Defrost before reheating.)
6. Pour the puréed soup back into the pan and reheat it over a medium heat for a few minutes, stirring occasionally until you can see bubbles breaking gently on the surface. Taste a spoonful and add a pinch or two of salt if you think the soup needs it, plus more pepper and sugar if you like. If the colour’s not a deep enough red for you, plop in another teaspoon of tomato purée and stir until it dissolves. Ladle into bowls and serve. Or sieve and serve chilled with some cream swirled in.

Jam Doughnuts.

  

500g 1lb 2oz Strong white flour.

25g 1oz margarine.

25g 1oz caster sugar.

12g 2 sachets easy blend dried yeast.

300ml 11fl oz  water (150ml near boiling, 150ml cold).

200g 7oz jam.

 

Coating. 

100g 3 1/2 oz granulated sugar.

5g 1tsp ground cinnamon. 

Mix these together in a bowl and place on plate.

 

1. Sieve the flour into a large mixing bowl and rub in the margarine. Stir in sugar and dried yeast.

2. Mix the warm water, stirring continuously with a round bladed knife until well blended together.

3. Turn the dough out onto a floured surface and knead for about 5 minutes until smooth.

4. Divide the dough into pieces of about 65g 2 1/2 oz, knead into a small round and roll out to about 10cm 4 inches in diameter.

5. Place rounded teaspoons of jam in the centre of the rounds of dough, lightly dampen the edges with a little water and draw the dough together carefully covering the jam. Seal well turn over and place on a tray and cover with lightly oiled cling film. Prove (let rise) in a warm place until doubled their size.

6. Meanwhile heat the oil in deep frying pan to 180C 375F. When the doughnuts have risen place smooth side down in the hot oil fry for 2 1/2 minutes on each side until golden brown.

7. Drain the doughnuts on kitchen paper and then roll in the sugar and cinnamon.

Grilled portobello burgers

Ingredients

• 2 tbsp Dijon mustard
• 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
• 2 large portobello mushrooms
• 2 thick slices beefsteak tomato
• 2 ciabatta rolls, toasted
• 2 slices red onion
• 2 handfuls rocket

 

• Mix the mustard and vinegar together. Brush half of it over the mushrooms and season well. Grill for 2-3 minutes each side. Put the tomato slices on top and grill for a minute.
• Spread the remaining sauce over the buns then add the tomato and mushroom, tomato side down, followed by the red onion and rocket.

Chunky oven chips

• 750g Desirée potatoes (about 3 medium large), peeled
• groundnut oil , for drizzling
• sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

 

 

• Heat oven to its highest setting, ideally 250C/fan 230C/gas 9. Cut each potato into 1cm-wide slices, then into 1cm-thick sticks. Blanch in a large pan of boiling water for 3 mins, then drain well.
• Shake the potatoes out onto a roasting pan, drizzle with oil, ensuring each chip is evenly coated, then season well. Bake for about 15-20 mins, turning the potatoes at least twice, until golden brown and crisp.

Tomato Soup

• 1-1.25kg/2lb 4oz-2lb 12oz ripe tomatoes
• 1 medium onion
• 1 small carrot
• 1 celery stick
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 2 squirts of tomato purée (about 2 tsp)
• a good pinch of sugar
• 2 bay leaves
• 1.2 litres/ 2 pints hot vegetable stock (made with boiling water and 4 rounded tsp bouillon powder or 2 stock cubes)

 

 

1. Firstly, prepare your vegetables. You need 1-1.25kg/2lb 4oz-2lb 12oz ripe tomatoes. If the tomatoes are on their vines, pull them off. The green stalky bits should come off at the same time, but if they don’t, just pull or twist them off afterwards. Throw the vines and green bits away and wash the tomatoes. Now cut each tomato into quarters and slice off any hard cores (they don’t soften during cooking and you’d get hard bits in the soup at the end). Peel 1 medium onionand 1 small carrot and chop them into small pieces. Chop 1 celery stick roughly the same size.
2. Spoon the into a large heavy-based pan and heat it over a low heat. Hold your hand over the pan until you can feel the heat rising from the oil, then tip in the onion, carrot and celery and mix them together with a wooden spoon. Still with the heat low, cook the vegetables until they’re soft and faintly coloured. This should take about 10 minutes and you should stir them two or three times so they cook evenly and don’t stick to the bottom of the pan.
3. Holding the tube over the pan, squirt in about 2 tsp of tomato purée, then stir it around so it turns the vegetables red. Shoot the tomatoes in off the chopping board, sprinkle in a good pinch of sugar and grind in a little black pepper. Tear 2 bay leaves into a few pieces and throw them into the pan. Stir to mix everything together, put the lid on the pan and let the tomatoes stew over a low heat for 10 minutes until they shrink down in the pan and their juices flow nicely. From time to time, give the pan a good shake – this will keep everything well mixed.
4. Slowly pour in the 1.2 litres/ 2 pints of hot stock (made with boiling water and 4 rounded tsp bouillon powder or 2 stock cubes), stirring at the same time to mix it with the vegetables. Turn up the heat as high as it will go and wait until everything is bubbling, then turn the heat down to low again and put the lid back on the pan. Cook gently for 25 minutes, stirring a couple of times. At the end of cooking the tomatoes will have broken down and be very slushy looking.
5. Remove the pan from the heat, take the lid off and stand back for a few seconds or so while the steam escapes, then fish out the pieces of bay leaf and throw them away. Ladle the soup into your blender until it’s about three-quarters full, fit the lid on tightly and turn the machine on full. Blitz until the soup’s smooth (stop the machine and lift the lid to check after about 30 seconds), then pour the puréed soup into a large bowl. Repeat with the soup that’s left in the pan. (The soup may now be frozen for up to 3 months. Defrost before reheating.)
6. Pour the puréed soup back into the pan and reheat it over a medium heat for a few minutes, stirring occasionally until you can see bubbles breaking gently on the surface. Taste a spoonful and add a pinch or two of salt if you think the soup needs it, plus more pepper and sugar if you like. If the colour’s not a deep enough red for you, plop in another teaspoon of tomato purée and stir until it dissolves. Ladle into bowls and serve. Or sieve and serve chilled with some cream swirled in. For other serving suggestions, see opposite.

Tomato & mushroom pancakes

• 140g white self-raising flour
• 1 tsp soya flour
• 400ml soya milk
• vegetable oil , for frying

Topping/filling.

• 2 tbsp vegetable oil
• 250g button mushrooms
• 250g cherry tomatoes , halved
• 2 tbsp soya cream or soya milk
• large handful pine nuts
• snipped chives , to serve

 

1. Sift the flours and a pinch of salt into a blender. Add the soya milk and blend to make a smooth batter.
2. Heat a little oil in a medium non-stick frying pan until very hot. Pour about 3 tbsp of the batter into the pan and cook over a medium heat until bubbles appear on the surface of the pancake. Flip the pancake over with a palette knife and cook the other side until golden brown. Repeat with the remaining batter, keeping the cooked pancakes warm as you go. You will make about 8.
3. For the topping, heat the oil in a frying pan. Cook the mushrooms until tender, add the tomatoes and cook for a couple of mins. Pour in the soya cream or milk and pine nuts, then gently cook until combined. Divide the pancakes between 2 plates, then spoon over the tomatoes and mushrooms. Scatter with chives.

Potato and onion Dauphinoise.

Serves 4.

10g 1/4 oz butter/margarine, plus extra for greasing.

675g 1lb 8oz baking potatoes.

3 onions thinly sliced.

salt and black pepper.

1 tsp freshly grated nutmeg.

450ml 3/4 pint single cream.

1. Pre heat oven 180C, 350F Gas mark 4. Grease a shallow ovenproof dish. Thinly slice potatoes using the slicing blade on food processor or with sharp knife.

2. Arrange the potatoes and onions in alternate layers in the dish, lightly seasoning each layer with salt pepper and nutmeg. Finish with a potato layer, then pour the cream and dot with butter/margarine. Place on lower shelf of the oven and bake for 1 hour until golden brown.

The cream slowly seeps into the layers of thinly sliced potato and onion in this wonderfully rich French gratin. Treat your friends to it on a special occasion.